Top 10 · environment
Top 10 countries with the lowest CO₂ per person
Energy-related carbon dioxide emissions per person, tonnes. World Bank data, latest year 2024, covering 186 countries.
The top 10
1st of 186 · 2024
Nauru0 t per person
- 1stTuvalu0 t per person
- 3rdMicronesia0 t per person
- 4thMarshall Islands0 t per person
- 5thSomalia0 t per person
- 6thDR Congo0.1 t per person
- 7thCentral African Republic0.1 t per person
- 8thBurundi0.1 t per person
- 9thNiger0.1 t per person
- 10thChad0.1 t per person
The other end · bottom 5 of 186
Where the big countries land
- 174thUnited States13.6 t per person
- 168thChina9.3 t per person
- 88thIndia2.2 t per person
- 155thGermany6.9 t per person
- 90thBrazil2.3 t per person
Common questions
Questions people ask about CO₂ emissions
Which country has the lowest CO₂ per person?
Nauru ranks 1st of 186 countries at 0 t per person (2024 data). Source: World Bank.
Which countries are in the top 10 for CO₂ emissions?
The top 10 are Nauru, Tuvalu, Micronesia, Marshall Islands, Somalia, DR Congo, Central African Republic, Burundi, Niger and Chad — computed from World Bank data, latest year 2024.
Where does the United States rank in CO₂ emissions?
The United States ranks 174th of 186 countries at 13.6 t per person (2024 data). Source: World Bank.
What is the median CO₂ emissions worldwide?
Across the 186 countries covered, the median is 2.5 t per person. Values run from 0 t per person (Nauru, ranked 1st) to 82.8 t per person (Palau, ranked 186th).
Is CO₂ emissions higher in Europe or the US?
The median across 38 European countries is 5.2 t per person, against 13.6 t per person in the United States — it is higher in the US. Source: World Bank.
Which country has the highest CO₂ emissions?
Palau sits at the other end of the list: 82.8 t per person ranks 186th of 186 (2024 data). Source: World Bank.
Keep ranking
Keep exploring
More on environment
- Environmental performanceComposite environmental performance index.
- Renewable energyRenewables' share of final energy consumption.
- Air pollution (PM2.5)Population-weighted exposure to fine particles (PM2.5).
- Forest coverageShare of land area covered by forest.
- Life expectancyPeriod life expectancy at birth.
- Homicide rateDeaths by assault per 100,000 population.
Who leads the world
- Monacotops life expectancy86.5 years
- Singaporetops homicide rate0.1 per 100k
- Bulgariatops paid maternity leave59 weeks
Nauru leads on CO₂ emissions — see where it lands on every other measure, and which US state it most resembles.
From the blog: How reliable is World Bank data? · Census, BEA, CDC, BLS: why US state data is unusually good
All 68 measures →Every country ranked →Every US state →All the Top 10s →The overall board →How we read the data →